Like You
by nicoleXben
Summary: Isabella Swan is a lawyer in New York. Edward Cullen is her old boyfriend, coming to New York for his job. What will happen when they begin to reconnect? And just what made them fall apart? AH. Rated M for future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**I hope you enjoy. This is a new one for me. As always, I don't own Twilight.**

I laughed as I stood on top of the boulder, looking down into the lake beneath me. I grabbed onto the rope and shouted as I jumped off the rock and swung over the lake, letting go to cannonball into the water. I came up laughing at Rosalie trying to keep the water from completely ruining her hair. I pushed my long, brown hair from my face right as two arms wrapped around me and pulled me down into the water.

I came back up and found Edward behind me, a huge grin spreading across his face. I went to push him backward, but his hands found my wrists and pulled me in for a deep kiss. I let him kiss me and I melted into his touch, like I always did. I heard the catcalls behind me and turned with a smirk.

"Get a room, lovebirds!" Emmett yelled before Rosalie hit his arm.

I laughed and splashed water at him as Edward's arms wrapped around my waist again. His lips nipped beneath my ear. "Doesn't sound so bad though," he whispered against my skin.

I smirked as I turned around to face him. "We've had many, many rooms. You know it sounds amazing."

Edward's arms tightened around me and I could feel how he thought it sounded pressed against my hip. I smirked and splashed water at him as I swam away. "You need to calm down there, Romeo."

Emmett barked a laugh and Alice giggled, curled up against a rock with Jasper. "Let's have a chicken fight!" she shouted, pulling Jasper with her.

Rosalie groaned, examining her nails, "Do we have to, Alice?"

Jasper chucked and helped Alice get onto his shoulders. "You know better than to argue with her, Rose."

XxXxX

"Isabella? Are you listening to me?"

I shook my head slightly, setting the photograph back down on the table. That was one of my favorite days at the lake with everyone. Right before we all split up to go our separate ways. I turned toward Mike and smiled, "Of course I am. I just got a little lost in thought for a moment."

He scoffed and slid the stack of papers in front of my chair as I sat down. "I was saying that we need to go over the case some more tomorrow before it goes to court so that everything is in order and there won't be any surprises. Are you sure you're ready for this one?"

"Of course, I'm ready for it. I've been on this case for over a month. I know it front and back, but I'll go back through it all again tonight, if that will make you happy."

He placed his hand over mine and softened his harsh look, "I'm sorry, Isabella. I didn't mean for it to come out like that. You know that."

I nodded once, giving him a small smile. "I know. Are we still on for tonight? Dinner at the new Italian place?"

Mike nodded, turned back to his notes. "Sure thing. You can head on out of you want. I'm going to finish this up before I leave."

I nodded, picking up the file to review at home. "See you then, I guess." I grabbed my things before leaving the office to make my short walk home.

I fingered the picture that was sitting in the pocket of my old purse and pulled it out once more. We all looked so happy and carefree then. Everything was just so much easier when we were just 18 and our biggest worry was what we would do with the last summer before we all went off to college. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed the one person that I hadn't talked in quite a while. It rang several times, and I began to question why I would even call him. It's not like we kept in frequent contact in the past couple years.

The phone picked up and I heard his smooth voice answer. "Hello?"

I paused once, the air leaving me at his voice. "Hey. Edward? Sorry, is this a bad time?"

I heard some shuffling in the background and then the sound of a door closing softly. "Bella? Not at all. It's been awhile."

I laughed softly, "Yeah, I know. I just found an old picture today that I thought you might want if you don't have a copy of it."

"What picture is that?"

"All of us at the lake right before college. You and me, Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, and Jasper. I found it in my purse earlier."

Edward's laugh filled the phone. "Oh man, that was a good day. Yeah, I would love to get a copy of that one."

I smiled at the sound of his laugh. "I'll send it to you later then." I heard footsteps running up behind me and turned to find Mike coming down the street.

"Isabella, hold up!" he shouted as I stopped. I guessed he finished early and wanted to actually spend some time with me.

"Isabella? You going by your full name now?" Edward's voice sounded a little tensed over the phone.

"Yeah, I guess. I've been told that I sound more professional if I use it instead of just Bella."

"Well, _Isabella_ , I don't want to hold you up from whoever. Talk to you later and thanks for the picture." Edward hung up the phone before I could say anything and I sighed, putting the phone back into my purse. I should've known better than to call him of all people.

Mike reached me and threw his arm around my shoulders, "Who was on the phone?"

I slid the photo into my pocket as I gave Mike a smile. "Nobody. So what's on the agenda for tonight?"

Mike's smile dropped and he looked at the ground. I stopped and shrugged his arm off my shoulders. "Why even catch up with me if you don't want to see me, Mike? Just go back to the office and do whatever is so important. It's fine."

"Isabella, don't be upset. Please. I just need to get these reports finished."

"It's fine, Mike. I'll see you tomorrow at work." I walked off without waiting for his reply. I knew he wouldn't try to make it right anyway. He never did anymore.

I poured a glass of wine and sat down in front of the computer. I scanned the photo and pulled up my email, finding Edward's.

 _Hey, Edward. Here's the photo. –Isabella_

I grabbed the file from my bag and flipped it open on my desk to look back over a few things while my brain was still on the topic. After a few moments, my computer dinged, indicating a new email. I pulled it up and found Edward's name.

 **Thanks, Bella. I sent you one that you might not have either. By the way, are you still in New York? –E**

I pulled up the picture that he had attached, and I felt a smile appear on my face. It was one of the many things that I lost in my big move from Washington to New York. Our prom picture together from senior year. I wore this dark blue dress that hugged me in all the right places, and I remembered how much Edward had liked it. He had a matching suit, and looked absolutely amazing. His lips were against my ear in the picture, and I still remembered exactly what he had said to me when that picture was taken. He had let his lips grace my ear and he whispered that he couldn't get enough of me in that dress but knew that it would look better laying on a floor somewhere. It had immediately made me think of where we could sneak off to right at that moment.

I blushed in front of my computer as I typed up a reply and sent it back to him. _Yes, I am still in New York. I'm at the same law firm I was at last time we spoke. Why do you ask? And thank you for the picture. I lost it in the move out here, I think. Everything was so easy back then, wasn't it?_

Only a moment passed and another email had come in.

 **I'm going to be in your area in a week to prepare for a show. Would you want to meet somewhere for coffee and catch up? And I'll agree with you, that everything was much easier then.**

I replied to him, agreeing that I would like to meet him somewhere. I told him that I would be in touch with him later on to set an official time to meet. Edward had gone to school for composition and piano, and he now plays for may important venues all over the country. This would be his first time in New York that I knew of though.

EPOV

I turned around from the computer and found Alice standing behind me, a stern look on her face and arms crossed over her chest. "What do you want, Alice?"

"Who did you just send the picture from prom to? Don't tell me you've been talking to Bella again." Alice followed right behind me as I walked out of the room.

"She sent me an old picture of everyone so I sent one back that I knew she didn't take with her. There is nothing wrong with that."

Alice sighed and stepped in front of me. "I'm just worried about you, Edward. You're my big brother. I have a right to be concerned."

I brushed past Alice and continued through the house to find my jacket and car keys. "It's been eight years, Ali. I'm over it all."

"Bullshit, Edward. You know that's a front you put on anytime you talk to her. The two of you never got any kind of closure."

I turned toward Alice and heard how firm my voice was. "I'm over Bella. She left me and ran off to New York without ever looking back. I'm happy now, Alice. I don't need her."

Alice stopped and nodded once, letting the conversation die there.

I grabbed my keys and walked out the door. I drove to the studio in silence to practice some of my pieces for the New York show. Bella's dad never liked me. He thought that I wasn't good enough for Bella, which was probably true, but I loved her more than anyone else ever could have. He pushed her to go to school in New York and become a lawyer, but she wanted to write. She had always wanted to write, and she was so good at it. I guess she caved though because she left and went to New York the summer after that picture at the lake.

It was hard when she left. I tried to get into some schools there for piano, but the money didn't work out and I was stuck closer to home. We tried to make it work for awhile. We took turns flying out to see each other, spent all the time we could together, but a year later and it wasn't enough. In the end, Bella is the one that called it quits after she flew out here to see me. She was stressed and exhausted, but she wanted to end it. I tried so hard to make it work. I did everything that I could to move out there, but she didn't want me to. She just didn't want me anymore. So I let her go.

I was a zombie for a month after that. I didn't know what to do without Bella in my life at all. We had been friends since we were 10 and in a relationship since we were 15. She wasn't just my girlfriend; she had been my best friend. Everyone tried to get me out of the rut I fell into, but nothing worked. So I threw myself into my music and somehow I rose to the top of the class, I graduated early when I took an extra course load, and I now play shows across the country. So I guess I have Bella to thank for my success.

A knock on my car window brought me out of my thoughts, and I realized that I had just been sitting in my parked car at the studio. I rolled down the window and smiled at the woman on the other side.

"Hurry up, Edward. Get to rehearsing. I want to hear it today."

I laughed and got out of the car. "You're impossible to please, Tanya. You know it's going to be perfect."

She turned around and smiled at me. "Sure thing, Ed. Now get in there and play me a song before you get to New York and screw everything up."

I laughed, but felt like those words could apply to a lot more than my music.

 **Please review and let me know what you think about this first chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews I've gotten and everyone that is following this story. As always, I don't own Twilight.**

I smiled walking out of the courtroom. We had won the case in no time, and I was thrilled with the success that Mike thought I wouldn't be able to do. I shook the hands of the couple that I was defending and made my way to freshen up before meeting Mike back at the office. We were supposed to be going out tonight since he cancelled on me before, but I wasn't holding high hopes for it.

I ran my fingers through my hair and thought back to how long it used to be in high school. It had almost reached my waist then, and I loved how it looked and felt. Mike convinced me that I would look more serious with shorter hair, and I agreed with him. He knew much more about this world than I did in the beginning anyway. My hair now sat right above my shoulders, and I kept it straightened all the time. There was little sign of the hair I used to love other than its plain brown color.

I reapplied my nude lipstick and put on a light layer of mascara. I caught sight of my nails in the mirror and saw that they were polished perfectly, not a fault on them. I looked at myself in the mirror, and for the first time, I realized how put together and fake I looked. I looked almost like a doll that someone spent time making look perfect. No blemishes, faults, or out of place hairs. I looked away quickly, grabbed my stuff, and left the courthouse.

My phone started to ring, and I pulled it out to find Alice's name flashing on the screen. "Hello?"

"Why are you talking to Edward?"

I was taken aback by her outburst and it took me a moment to answer. "Am I not allowed to talk to him now, Alice?"

"If it was up to me, no. You wouldn't be allowed to talk to him at all."

"I just found an old picture that I thought he might want. That's all."

Alice scoffed on the other end of the line. "I don't trust you, Bella. Not with my brother. I swear, if you hurt him again, I'm going to make your life hell."

I froze in the middle of the sidewalk, shocked at her words. "Alice, I'm not doing anything to him. I just sent him the picture as his friend. I know that you've been upset with me, but this was for the best for the both of us."

"Go to hell," she spat and then immediately hung up.

I gaped down at the phone in my hand and felt the tears welling up in my eyes. I knew that she had been mad at me ever since I broke up with Edward, but I guess I never realized how deep that anger ran for her. I quickly blinked back the tears and put the phone back into my purse.

When I got back to the office, I found Mike hunched over his desk, papers spread everywhere. I sat down on the sofa, waiting for him to look up. After a few moments, I cleared my throat and he jumped.

"Shit, Isabella. How long have you been sitting there?" He asked, face flushed from my scaring him.

I laughed quietly, "Sorry, Mike. I just got here. I thought you heard me come in."

"No. I didn't. I got handed this case that is going to court in two days, and I don't know anything about it." His gaze went back down to the papers in front of him.

I let out a soft sigh, "So you're working late again?"

Mike nodded, not even bothering to look up at me. I let myself out and called one of the few friends that I knew would be able to spare some time whenever I needed her. The phone rang only once before she answered.

"Do you want to get some drinks, Rose?"

I could hear her smile when she answered. "You don't even have to ask, Bella. I'll meet you at the usual at 7."

I smiled, hanging up the phone. Rosalie moved to New York not long after I did, and we got much closer than we had ever been in high school. She began her modeling career out here, and Emmett followed her just months later. He opened his own car repair business and has had amazing success with it. Rosalie works a lot of runway shows, but hasn't landed anything permanent. She's one of the few people that I trust fully with my life now.

XxXxX

I walked in to our usual bar and found Rosalie already perched on a stool, cocktail in hand. She looked stunning as always with her blond hair draped across her shoulder in waves, and a tight black dress that ended mid-thigh. I felt inadequate beside her with my short brown hair pinned back and my usual work attire: pencil skirt and a blouse.

Rosalie smiled as I sat on the stool beside her and waved for a drink for me. "So what's going on, Bella?"

"Mike flaked yet again. I'm just getting so tired of it," I answered, taking a sip of the drink that was placed in front of me.

"I've told you the guy is nothing but trash. You need someone better than him. You deserve that with everything you've gone through."

"Rose. Please. You know why I won't leave him. I mean, he's good to me and everything. I just wish that he paid me a little more attention."

Rosalie tapped her glass to mine, "I hear that. Emmett talks about nothing but cars lately. It drives me up the wall. Then it's usually him driving me up _against_ the wall, if you know what I mean."

I busted out in laughter at the look on her face. "You're priceless."

Rosalie smiled and lifted her drink to her lips, "Seriously though, Bella. You do deserve someone that treats you well and pays attention to you."

I waved her off and sighed, placing my phone on the bar in front of us. "Guess who called me today?"

Rosalie shrugged and picked up my phone, looking through my recent calls. "Oh my God. Alice called you? What did she want?"

"To yell at me and give me a warning to not hurt Edward."

Rosalie sighed and put my phone back down. "She needs to get over how long ago it was that you left. And she doesn't even really know what happened." She took a sip of her drink and then looked back up to me. "What did you do that made her call you now?"

I pulled the photo out of my purse and handed it to her. "I found this and just thought Edward might want a copy of it. We always used to talk about how this was one of the best days for all of us."

Rosalie smiled as she looked at the picture, "Man, I was such a bitch then. How did you tolerate me?"

I laughed, taking the picture back from her. "The same way that I do now, Rose."

I told her about meeting with Edward briefly and then the topic was dropped. We didn't talk any more about Edward or Alice or Mike. Emmett came up a few times, but that was to be expected with Rosalie. We both ordered one more drink apiece and then decided to call it a night. Rosalie gave me a hug outside of the bar and pulled back, giving me a stern look. "Bella. Just be careful if you two meet up. I mean, you haven't really talked since the breakup and-"

"Stop it, Rose," I said as I cut her off. "We might meet for coffee and that's it."

Rosalie nodded once and then I left, headed back home. I changed into a tank top with some shorts that I usually slept in. I decided that I should get a little case reading done before work tomorrow, and I made my way over the computer. I saw a few unread emails, so I began scrolling through what was actually important and what was simply junk. I froze when I saw Edward's name.

 **Sorry if Ali called you. She threatened it when she saw me send the picture to you, but I tried to stop her. You know how she is. I apologize for her behavior. –E**

I smiled, knowing that Alice had always been protective over him. She's a year younger, but she is so protective like someone would be over a younger sibling, not an older one. I smiled and hit reply. _She called and yelled at me for a few minutes. But it's not your fault. Don't worry over it._

I picked up the case file and began reading over another client that I would be representing and sighed at the boredom of the case. Another man that fell because a wet floor sign wasn't in place properly, and he wanted to sue the company. When I got into law, I didn't think I would end up representing a majority of cases like these. There was nothing to them, and there was no challenge in winning most of them. The ding of my computer was a relief as I put the case back down.

 **Damn it, I'm still sorry. I don't know why she does things like that. So, if you're still willing to meet up, I'm going to be in the city Monday through Wednesday, whichever day works best for you.**

I flipped open my calendar and looked through everything that I had planned. It was Thursday, giving me only four days until Edward would be around. The first time in eight years that we had seen each other. _Of course we can still meet up. Monday would probably be best for me. We can set up a time and place later on._

I got another email from him right after that one sent with an attachment on it. **By the way, I came across this picture the other day.**

I clicked on the link and felt a smile spread across my face immediately. Alice had taken this picture at their house about a month before graduation. Edward didn't have enough money to take me out, but he set up a home movie theater for me. We spent hours and hours watching movies, and eventually we both passed out on the couch. My head had been laying on Edward's shoulder and his arm was draped over my waist and resting on my hip. His head was against mine, and his feet stretched out in front of him. That had been such a good night until Alice took a picture and the flash woke us up.

I printed the picture out and found an old album, placing it in there with the lake photo. I sent Edward an email back. _Thank you for that. I had forgotten she even took a picture of us that night. It was a good night, wasn't it?_

It was several minutes before I got a reply, and my breath caught when I read what he sent back to me. **Every night with you was a good night, Bella.**

Rosalie POV

I finished putting the dishes into the dishwater and went over to join Emmett on the couch. His arm immediately settled around me as I slid onto the couch, and I looked up at him. "So apparently Alice called Bella today and yelled at her."

Emmett laughed and sipped on his beer. "That little pixie is always so extreme. What made her do that?"

"Well Bella found an old picture of everyone at the lake and sent it to Edward, I guess. Now Edward is going to be here next week, and he wants to meet up with Bella. Alice probably told her to stay away from him." I picked at my nails and leaned my head against Emmett's chest.

He placed a kiss on top of my head and tightened his arm around me. "Well you can't really blame her there, Rosie. She didn't know what happened with Bella. Nobody did."

I nodded, leaning up to kiss him. Emmett set the beer down and pulled me closer into the kiss. I ran a hand into his hair and smiled against his lips, "I love you, Emmett."

"I love you too, baby." He stood up, picking me up with him, and made his way toward the bedroom. I smiled and felt my toes curl with the thought of where this would end up with us.

 **Just a little bit of Rosalie there at the end. Please, please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you to everyone reviewing and following along with this story! This makes me so excited to continue it. There is a warning near the end of this chapter for an attack scene. It is nothing too graphic.**

Friday and Saturday came and went with absolutely nothing exciting to report. I worked on my cases and filled out some paperwork to keep on file all day Friday. I spent Saturday with Rosalie and Emmett, which was a lot of fun, but it reminded me how little time Mike ever spent with me. By the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, I was officially nervous about meeting with Edward. We had already decided that we would meet at 11:00 at a little coffee shop down the street from my law firm. I gave him the address and we left it at that.

A knock on my door made me jump from where I was reclined on the couch, and I opened it to find Mike on the other side. I smiled and waved him in, "Well hello. I wasn't expecting you to come by."

Mike laughed nervously and sat on the couch, "I hope this is alright. I wasn't doing anything today and I wanted to spend some time with you."

I smiled, curling up beside him and feeling his arm rest on my shoulders. "Well it's better than not seeing you at all, I guess. So what should we do today?"

"I was thinking we could head over to the park or something?"

"That sounds fine to me. Let me go change and I'll be ready." I went into my bedroom and quickly put on a navy blue tank top with a pair of white shorts and some sandals. I threw a light coat of makeup on and ran a brush through my hair, making sure it looked alright without being straightened.

A few minutes later and we were out the door, on our way to the park. Mike was one of the first people I met when I came to New York and began school. I got to skip most of my general education classes thanks to Advanced Placement high school courses, and it put me in the same year as him. Mike's just a year older than me, but he knew so much more thanks to his father being in law as well. He became a mentor to me very quickly. We didn't start dating until almost a year after Edward and I broke up. He's a fine boyfriend, but sometimes I just wished for more.

He was just very predictable, though I guess I've fallen into that description alongside him. We made it to the park and went to sit on a bench by the duck pond. Like we always did. Mike immediately began talking about the case that he was working on, and I tuned it all out like I usually did. I used to be so spontaneous and never needed anything planned. I don't think I could live that way now, and that's probably why I stayed with Mike for so long. He was comfortable and I knew what to expect with him.

That's when I looked up and my predictable day became very unpredictable. There he was running through the park like he had been here all along. He didn't notice me sitting on the bench, but I knew exactly who he was. Edward. He had definitely grown in the years since I last saw him. He had filled out with muscles and a toned shape. His shirt was loose, but you could tell that he was very defined beneath it. His face was as stunning as always, but he seemed to keep a little stubble on it now. His hair was the giveaway though. That same messy brown hair that he had always had.

I placed a hand on Mike's leg, interrupting his story. "Hey, Mike. I'm going to go say hey to a friend I haven't seen in awhile."

I'm sure he responded, but I didn't even hear him as I stood up and jogged over to where Edward had stopped by a tree to take a breather. I got closer and slowed down, clearing my throat. "Umm…Edward?"

He turned around quickly and then froze. His jaw fell open and he muttered under his breath before answering me. "Bella. Wow, hey. Didn't expect to see you here."

"Yeah. When did you get in? How was your flight?" I shuffled on my feet, suddenly very nervous. I had no idea why I came running over here instead of just waiting to see him tomorrow. I was already regretting how awkward this was.

Edward laughed and ran a hand across the back of his neck. "I just got in a couple hours ago. The flight was good, thanks for asking. I wanted to get a run in before I started rehearsals in the concert hall."

I nodded and glanced around the park. I looked back to find Edward looking over me. "You look different, Bella."

I laughed and a blush bloomed on my cheeks. Before I could answer, Mike was coming up behind me and draping an arm over my shoulders. "Isabella, who's this?"

Edward's eyes darkened as he saw the arm around me and I moved away from Mike subtly to try and ease the tension that invaded the air around us. "Mike, this is Edward. Edward, Mike."

"Her boyfriend," Mike said, reaching out a hand to shake Edward's.

Edward shook his hand politely, clearly uncomfortable with the situation now. "Nice to meet you, Mike. I'll see you tomorrow, Bella?"

I nodded, giving him an apologetic smile. Edward turned and ran off down the path, and I turned to Mike. "Seriously? Now you decide to be all territorial?"

Mike laughed and crossed his arms. "What are you doing meeting up with your old boyfriend, _Bella_?"

I felt the anger rising up in me and I pushed my way past him. "Oh get over that. You know that's what I used to go by. He's playing a concert and we're just meeting up for coffee tomorrow. It's no big deal."

Mike followed right behind me and grabbed my arm, stopping me. "I saw the way he looked at you, Isabella. He just wants right back in your pants."

I jerked my arm away from him and stormed off. "Fuck you, Mike. I'm going home."

I made my way back without Mike ever even trying to follow me. Sometimes it would be nice to know that he at least cared enough to try instead of just protecting his territory.

XxXxX

That night, I sat down at my computer and found an email from Edward. **Hey B. Sorry if I caused any problems there. I heard you yell and saw you walking out of the park by yourself. You okay?**

I smiled at his words. At least someone cared about me enough to make sure I was alright. _Thanks Edward. I'm fine. Mike can just be a jerk sometimes, and that happened to be one of them. Sorry he took it out on you._

It wasn't long before another email came through and I found myself immediately checking it. **I didn't mean anything by what I said at the park. You don't look a bad different, just nothing like the Bella I remembered. The hair and everything.**

 _Mike said the shorter hair made me seem more serious and would be better in the courtroom. Everything else just kind of followed suit._

Edward POV

I almost didn't recognize Bella when I turned around to find her there. She blames the hair, but it was way more than that. There was almost no sign of the carefree, spontaneous girl that I had loved with every part of me. Everything about her looked too put together now, and she looked exactly like those fake business women that we used to make fun of. In her eyes though, I could still see the spark of that girl.

And then there was the asshole boyfriend. She seemed comfortable enough around him that they must have been together for awhile, but he was too territorial. I knew she couldn't have liked that unless she really had changed that much. His grip in his handshake was weak though, and I hoped that I hurt him with my return squeeze. All I knew was that I would have never let her walk away like she did when I saw her leaving that park alone. She was clearly mad and hurt about something, and it almost made me want to go punch the ass for hurting her. But then I remembered that it was Bella. And I don't even know her anymore, not really.

My phone ringing brought me out of my own thoughts, and I picked it up, "Hello, my favorite sister."

Alice's laugh on the other end of the line made me smile. "Hey, brother. How was your flight?"

"It was good. We didn't crash so that's a plus. It's already been more eventful here than I hoped it would be."

"What happened?"

I sighed and went to sit on the couch in the cheap hotel room. "I went for a run in the park and found Bella there. Along with her boyfriend."

Alice grumbled under her breath before she replied. "You didn't talk to her did you? Edward don't do this to yourself."

"She came over and talked to me. It was fine until the boyfriend had to come and claim his territory. Ali, don't read so much into it."

"Edward, she broke your heart. You shouldn't be nice to her at all."

I sighed, running my hand through my hair. "Ali…If Jasper left you and years later you had the chance to see him again just for a little bit, wouldn't you want to? At least to see if you could find out what happened?"

There was silence for a minute, "I guess you're right. But Edward…Be careful. Please."

"Alice, I'm not delusional about any of this. I don't expect us to end back up together. I just want to talk to her and at least find some answers about what happened. You know the reasons I got were crap."

Alice agreed and then I could hear a smirk in her voice when she spoke, "And Tanya?"

I sighed and tugged on my hair, "Damn woman is going to drive me into an early grave. She's amazing at finding me places to perform, but she's beginning to think that she's also my girlfriend no matter how many times I shut that down."

"Maybe you should consider it, though. I mean, she's a nice person."

"I don't think so, Ali. Yeah, she's nice, but if that goes south, there goes my foot in the door at tons of venues." I had considered it once about a year ago. Tanya was a very good person, but I couldn't risk my career on the chance that we didn't work out and she left working with me.

Alice sighed and I knew that meant she agreed with me, albeit very reluctantly. "I love you, Edward. Let me know how it goes tomorrow."

"I will. And I love you too, little sister." Alice scoffed at the nickname and we said our goodbyes before hanging up.

? POV **WARNING: This is an attack scene. It is not very graphic.**

It was the dream again. It's always the same dream. I'm running from someone, but I never know who it is. They are all in black with a ski mask over their face. I'm running faster and faster, but it's never enough. I can feel them getting closer and I know that I won't make it. I scream for anyone to save me, but there's nobody around. There's nobody to hear me, and even if they did, they wouldn't come to save me.

I can feel him getting closer, I can feel the hands as they grab my shoulders and throw me to the ground. There are pebbles on the ground beneath me and I can feel them digging into my back. I try to fight back, but he pins my hands to the ground as his weight settles over me. His breath falls over my face and he laughs at the tears in my eyes. He holds me on the ground, the pebbles digging into my skin, and tells me how pretty I am. I'm so pretty and he knows that I've been wanting him for awhile. He could tell with the way I looked at him.

I scream one last time and then he's on me, around me, in me. He is the only things that seems to be in the world. Along with the pain. And those damn pebbles still digging into my back.

And then I wake up. Tears are falling down my cheeks and I struggle for air. I feel like there isn't enough of it in the room with me. I struggle out of bed, gasping for air, and turn on the lights. I make my way to the bathroom and fall in front of the toilet, retching into it. I curl up on the floor of the bathroom and that's where I stay for the rest of the night.

 **There are going to be some darker themes as we continue with the story, but they are not going to get very graphic. I will put warnings before all of them as well. Please review. Any ideas who this was?**


	4. Chapter 4

**This chapter is going to hold an explanation of the attack at the end of the last chapter. It begins in Rosalie's POV and will continue throughout this chapter. Just be warned.**

My hands were shaking as I made my way over to the coffee shop. Edward texted me and told me that he was already there and had a table in the corner. Mike didn't say anything to me this morning, but I doubt he was still upset about me meeting Edward today. Mike usually didn't really care about stuff that I did anymore. I pushed open the door of the café and found Edward right away.

He smiled at me as I sat down. "Hey, Bella. How's your day going?"

"It's pretty good. Just doing some routine case records today. How about you?" This was already so awkward, and I had no idea what to even talk to him about anymore. It's weird how you can know everything about someone and now it's like I don't know him at all.

"It's been good so far. I'll go back later and run through the whole show to catch any glitches, but it should be good." Edward said and then laid two tickets on the table. "I didn't know if you might want to come? But these are for you. I won't be offended if you don't come."

I picked them up and saw it was for Friday night. "Yeah, I'll be there. Thank you."

We sat in silence for a moment and then Edward laughed. "Hell, this is awkward."

I laughed with him and nodded, "Most definitely. Glad it wasn't just me."

"I thought it might be so I brought some icebreakers." Edward pulled several photographs out of his pocket and put them on the table. "Some common ground we can land on."

I picked up the first one and laughed, "Oh man, these braces were the worst. Thanks for bringing on where I looked like a total geek."

I was 14 and just about to get my braces off. I had gone with Edward, Alice, and their parents to the beach that summer and the three of us had a blast. That was right before Edward and I decided that we would start dating.

Edward chuckled and looked at it as I put it back down. "That was a fun summer though, brace-face."

I stuck my tongue out at him and picked up the next one, my smile faltering as I stared at my mother's face. "Could I keep this one? I don't have this picture."

Edward nodded, moving closer to see the picture I had holding. "Of course you can. That's why I brought it. I wasn't sure if you had it or not."

Junior year of high school, my mother got sick and passed away months later. This was the last picture anyone took of us before she got so ill. She was still so full of life and happy during this time. "She always loved you so much more than she did me," I told him with a small laugh.

Edward smiled, "Who wouldn't? I'm charming."

I laughed and hit his shoulder, noticing the serious muscle that he was hiding under his sleeve. Yes, Edward had surely filled out in the years since I had seen him. I slipped that picture into my bag and laughed at the next one.

Edward chuckled at my reaction. "I thought you might enjoy that."

Edward and I were seniors, and we skipped school one day because it was just so gorgeous. Those days are so rare in Washington. I had taken a picture of him at the end of the day, and I was honestly surprised that he kept it all these years. We first had stopped for ice cream, and his scoop of chocolate fell right off the cone and onto his tan shorts. Then, while we walked through the trail in the forest, he stepped in dog poop and had to find a place to clean his shoe. The last straw was when we were almost back to the house, a bird flew over and pooped on his shoulder. That's when I deemed it Edward's Bad Luck Day and took a photo to commemorate it.

Edward chuckled and then quickly grabbed the next one before I could pick it up. "This one wasn't supposed to get in there."

I held out my hand and gave him a look. He shook his head, insisting that I wouldn't want to see it, but I held my ground. When he put the photo in my hand, I realized why he tried to hide to so quickly. It was a picture from the last trip he made out here. The last time I saw him before the breakup. It was three weeks before I broke up with him, and damn if I didn't look happy in that picture. Rosalie had taken the picture of us, and Edward's eyes were only on me. I could see the love for me on his face as I looked over the photo. I laid it back down on the table and blinked back tears that tried to form.

Edward cleared his throat and took the photo, looking at it briefly before putting it in his pocket. "I really didn't mean for that one to be in there. I'm sorry."

I shook my head and tucked my hair behind my ear, "It's fine. Really."

Edward looked away from me, and I knew what was coming. I could feel the question forming before he even took the breath to speak it. "What happened, Bella? What happened between that picture and three weeks later?"

I shook my head and looked out the window. "I told you, Edward. I told you what happened."

He stared at me for a moment without speaking. I met his gaze, and I was afraid of what he found in my eyes. He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "We both know that was a bullshit excuse, Bella. I want to know what happened? Was it this guy? Mike?"

I let out a soft laugh and shook my head. "You seriously think I was cheating on you? Do you not know me at all?"

"No. I really don't. The Bella I knew would have told me the truth instead of giving me a shit excuse and then refusing to speak to me at all for almost a year." I saw the hurt and anger break through his face, and I felt the tears forming in my eyes.

I wrote down my home address on a slip of paper and handed it to him. "I never once cheated on you, Edward. I wouldn't ever do that. It was a year later before I started seeing Mike, and even then it wasn't anything serious. I can't do this here, in public. Come over tonight and we can talk about it."

Edward took the paper and stared at me. "No more lies?"

"No more lies." Edward watched me for a moment, and his hand lifted off the table, just the slightest bit and then it dropped. I noticed a tear fall down my cheek and I lowered my head as I wiped it away. I said my goodbye to Edward and quickly left the coffee shop. The moment I stepped outside I texted Mike to tell him that I wouldn't be back at work today. Then I called Rosalie.

Her voice held a smile and laughter when she answered, but it turned serious when she heard the tears through my voice. "Rose. I need you."

Rosalie POV

Bella and I weren't close in high school. I was the popular cheerleader with the football playing boyfriend, while Bella was just the girl that was dating the brother of my brother's girlfriend. We were more acquaintances than anything. When I came to New York, I used Bella as my connection to find out the best places to live and where she thought I could get the most modeling done, and it was nice to have that person that already knew a lot about the city. After that, we started hanging out some, especially once Emmett got here. He always looked after Bella and wanted to keep up that friendship with her.

Then one night, I got a phone call from her. She was crying and telling me that I was the only person she knew to call. I went to her house, using the spare key she had given to Emmett, and found Bella curled into a ball in her bed. I had no idea what had happened, but I knew it was something bad for Bella to look the way she did. Her eyes were just empty, staring into nothing. Makeup was running down her face from the tears she had cried. I placed a hand on her back, and Bella whimpered while flinching from the touch.

I got her in the shower and she cleaned herself off. That was when I saw the bruises shaped like hands on her wrists. I saw the tiny marks all over her back that she said were the pebbles on the ground days later when she finally spoke again. Her inner thighs were terribly bruised, and that's when all of the pieces fell into place. Bella got out of the shower and I held her while she cried. She had gone to the police on her own before she called me, and the man used a condom and they didn't find any evidence on her to help find the guy.

I stayed with Bella for three days, but she didn't say another word until Edward called her phone and she stared at it. When the call ended, Bella looked to me and finally spoke. "What do I tell Edward?"

We had talked for hours after that about what happened and how she was going to handle it. We found her a new apartment, and I stayed with her until she was able to be on her own again. She used all of her vacation from work, but it helped her heal enough to go back. I could see it on her face though, she felt used and unworthy of Edward's love now. No matter how much I talked to her about it.

Her phone call brought back so much of that. I met her at her house and found Bella crying on her couch. I walked over and sat down with her. "Bella, what happened?"

She wiped the tears and took a deep breath. "He wants to know why I left him. He wants to know the real reason."

"Are you going to tell him?"

Bella nodded her head. "I have to, Rose. He deserves to know the truth. I just…How do you tell someone that?"

She broke down into more tears and I held her while the emotions poured out. "Honey, if you aren't ready-"

Bella's head snapped up and she cut me off. "No. I have to tell him. But what if he hates me even more."

I wiped her tears and smiled at her. "You know Edward better than I do, Bella. And I know without a doubt he won't blame you for this."

Bella looked down at her lap, and I went to the kitchen to fix her some tea that I knew would help calm her down. I watched her over the counter and once again saw nothing but the broken girl that was too afraid to tell her boyfriend that she had been raped.

Bella POV

Rosalie sat with me for several hours until I had calmed down enough and composed myself. I couldn't do enough to repay her for everything that she had done for me over the years. I went to the bathroom to freshen myself up before Edward came over. I ran a brush through my hair, put it into a ponytail, and then moved on to my face. I wet a washcloth and pressed it to my skin to cool it down. It was red and splotched from crying so hard earlier. I dried off the moisture and then sat down at the vanity to put on some makeup. I picked up the concealer and stared at my reflection.

I couldn't do it. I put it back down and went into the living room. I was sure that I would end up crying again at some point, and I didn't want makeup running down my face while he was here. Moments later, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to find Edward there, and his eyebrows creased at my appearance. I waved him in and shut the door behind him, moving to sit on the couch and knowing that he would follow.

"Are you alright, Bella?" He was watching me closely, knowing that I must have been crying.

I nodded and pulled my knees to my chest, wrapping my arms around them. "I am. This just…it isn't going to be easy."

Edward placed his hand on my knee and met my gaze, "You know me, Bella. I just want to know what happened. You can take however much time you need."

I smiled and nodded. He was such a good guy. I knew he meant those words. "The last time you came here. It happened a week after that. I was…I was coming home from a class." My voice already broke on the words and I felt Edward go tense.

"Bella…You don't have to." I looked up and saw pain in his eyes. Confusion over what happened, but also a pain at how I was still hurting.

I shook my head, "No, I do have to. You deserve to know. I should've told you then but…but I couldn't."

Edward nodded and watched me. I looked down at my knees and took a deep breath before I continued. "I was coming home from class. There was someone. A man. He was behind me and…well…he was stronger than me. I screamed, but nobody heard me. They didn't bother to help if they did." My voice broke and I could feel the tears falling from my eyes. "He held me down. He covered my mouth. And he…he..." I felt the sob come from me just moments before Edward's arms wrapped around me tightly, pulling me against him. I let him pull me in and clutched his shirt in my hand.

"Shh, Bella. Hush, hush. You're okay now. It's okay." The rumble of his chest calmed the free-flowing tears, but he didn't let me go even after they stopped altogether. We sat like that in silence for awhile, and I realized how deeply I missed him. The smell, the feel, the sound of his voice. Everything that made him Edward. After awhile, he spoke again. "He raped you, Bella?"

I nodded against his chest, and I felt him tense. I broke out of his grasp and stared at him wide eyed. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it-"

"Bella stop that." Edward's voice was hard as he cut me off. He took hold of my hand and stared into my wide eyes, "That was not your fault. Nothing about it is your fault."

I nodded. "I couldn't tell you. Rosalie knew. And Emmett because of her. But I couldn't tell you, Edward. I was dirty. I felt him on me all the time."

Edward lifted his hand to tuck a piece of hair behind my ear. "I would've helped you. I wouldn't have left."

I leaned against his shoulder and felt his arms wrap around me. "You deserved better than that." Edward didn't say another word, but instead held onto me tightly. We sat that way so long that sleep claimed me, and for once I didn't have the same nightmare.

Edward POV

The fury in me slowly died down the longer Bella slept in my arms. I couldn't leave her like this. So I stayed. I sat there for hours, savoring the feel of holding her again. I placed a light kiss upon her head and then rested my cheek on it. My gorgeous girl had been raped. The anger began to rise again, and I felt my heart breaking again. I ran a finger along her arm and she cuddled closer against my chest. I let myself stay that way until sleep came for me too. For at least one moment more I could pretend that she was mine.

 **Please review! I've had an easy day so I've been rolling out the chapters, but don't get used to it. Also, if anyone needs a Beta, I am not available for that. Please, please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews! Please log in to review because I love to respond to any questions the readers have. However, if you don't log in, I will try to respond in a note before the chapter. This chapter won't be quite as depressing as the last. Enjoy.**

 **Question: Why would Bella send a pic to Edward? Didn't she break up up with him?**

 **A: Yes, Bella did break up with Edward. She really did not mean anything bad by sending him the picture, which we will understand more as the story progresses. Pictures were their thing, and he was the first one she thought of and wanted him to have it to remember a fun day. Bella's intentions aren't always bad, but she doesn't always go about it the right way.**

Bella POV

I could see sunlight shining through my eyelids, but I didn't want to wake up yet. I felt so warm and protected. I moved a little to get more comfortable and then something moved beneath me. I opened my eyes and gasped, realizing that Edward was the reason I felt so warm. His arms were around me tight and I wiggled a little trying to get free without hurting him. He must have fallen asleep sometime while I slept on him and we ended up laying on the couch, with me on top of him. I just about had his arm off of my waist when Edward chuckled beneath me and let me go.

"You should know better than to move like that on a sleeping man, Bella." His voice was scratchy with sleep, and I suddenly felt exactly what he was talking about with his hardness pressed against my hip.

I quickly moved off of him, a blush on my cheeks deepening. "Sorry for that."

Edward laughed as he sat up and moved my hair back. "Now that's the Bella I know with a blush on her face. And it's fine. Nothing you haven't seen before."

My jaw dropped and I hit his arm, "Edward!"

He laughed and then let the smile die from his face. "Thank you for telling me that last night. And sorry I fell asleep. I didn't want to wake you."

"It's ok, Edward. I'm sorry for sleeping on you." I picked up my phone and saw that it was only a little after 8 and texted Mike to let him know I would be in the office soon.

"Boyfriend?" Edward asked as I put my phone back down.

"Just letting him know I would be in the office soon."

Edward studied me and then cleared his throat. "I just…I wish you had told me then, Bella. We could've worked through it."

I ran my fingers through his hair, missing the feel of it. "I know. I know that now. I just thought you deserved better than a girl that couldn't even keep herself safe."

Edward tucked my hair back and stared into my eyes. "Bella, don't you know that you were everything to me?"

I leaned into his touch and found myself moving closer to him until I could feel his breath on my lips. Neither of us moved, too unsure of what the other might do. A moment later, I tilted my head and pressed my lips against his, feeling them moving together. His hands grabbed my waist and mine found hold in his hair. It was like we never had been apart. He pressed me closer and I found myself getting lost in the kiss, the feel of him against me once more.

Then he pushed me away, and he was standing up pacing. "Dammit, Bella. What the hell?"

I stared at him, my eyes going wide. "I…Edward I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

He looked back at me on the couch and his eyes softened, "I can't play these games with you anymore. I can't be the guy you use and then leave when life gets hard."

I stood up and wrapped my arms around myself. "I'm sorry, Edward. I am. I didn't plan to kiss you."

Edward watched me for a moment, but I wouldn't look at him. I could feel the space between us growing and forming again. He took a step toward me, lifted my head to meet his gaze. "Listen to me Bella. You were my life and you left me with no warning or explanation. I loved you more than anyone else ever will, and you broke me. I could've helped you. You will always be the girl that I love more than anything or anyone else. But I can't do this with you. I'm here until Saturday and then I'm gone. And we are nothing but friends that barely talk."

I didn't say a word, knowing that I deserved far worse from him. I watched Edward turn and walk out the door before the tears began falling again. I sat down on the couch and found a small slip of paper wadded up on the cushion. I unfolded it and found a photo that had clearly been opened and folded back up many, many times. It was the picture from the day Edward told me that he would marry me someday. He took a picture of me and told me that it had always been his favorite because I looked so happy for the rest of that day. I took the picture and tucked it away in my vanity drawer where it would be kept safe from all the bad things in the world.

Alice POV

I laughed as Jasper picked me up and started placing kisses along my neck, broken up by small nibbles. I wrapped my legs around his waist and put my hands on his face as I brought it up to kiss him. I bit his lower lip and Jasper growled against my lips as he pressed me against the wall. One of his hands rested on my butt while the other made its way to my breast, kneading it and making me just want more and more.

My head fell back to rest against the wall as his hand slid inside of the shirt, finding my nipple. I let out a soft moan and Jasper's teeth grazed my neck. His lips closed on my exposed neck and I ran a hand through his hair. The sound of my cell phone ringing broke through the silence, and I groaned as I hit the wall behind me. Jasper set me down on the floor and I muttered under my breath as I picked up my phone. "This better be pretty damn important."

"Alice, I need you to be serious for a moment."

Jasper had come up behind me and tried to keep me interested in him, but I put a hand on his shoulder to stop him at the sound of Edward's voice. "Are you okay?"

He let out a ragged breath, "I am. I guess. Ali, she was raped."

I sat down on the couch, Jasper behind me concerned. "What? Bella? When?"

"A couple weeks before she broke up with me. That's why she did it, I think. She didn't know how to handle it and didn't think she deserved to be with me anymore." His voice was short and I couldn't hear any emotion to know how he was handling it.

Jasper sat beside me and I put my hand on his arm, "Edward, how are you taking this? I mean, why is that what she chose to do?"

"I don't know. Apparently she called Rose. She had a hard time talking about it and I didn't want to push her. But maybe Rose knows something? I don't know how to deal with this, Ali."

I leaned against Jasper, not really knowing what to tell him. I worked with a lot of girls that had been traumatized by rape, but it was so different when it was personal. "Edward. I don't know. Every girl is going to handle it differently. I'm sorry. I can't really tell you what the right thing is to do."

Edward sighed, and then his voice was soft when he spoke. "Then she kissed me. We fell asleep on the couch last night and she kissed me this morning."

I sat up straight at that, completely shocked. "And what happened?"

"Well I kissed her back at first. But I stopped it. I can't go through the pain of losing her again. And what if life gets hard again? Will she just leave?"

I sighed at Edward's rambling and rolled my eyes. "Don't fall for it, Edward. Please don't. You know I loved Bella like she was my own sister, but there was no excuse for that. She shouldn't have run from you. And it's been eight years. You don't know her now."

Edward was silent for a moment. "I know. You're right, Ali."

"Now if you'll excuse me. I need to get back to my husband." I hung up the phone and leaned against Jasper, telling him what Edward had said.

He wrapped his arms around me and sighed, "Shit, that's tough."

I nodded, knowing that we couldn't really understand what she went through.

Bella POV

Mike immediately came into my office and closed the door when I got to work. He sat down in the chair by my desk and looked so uncomfortable by whatever he planned to say that I felt myself get nervous.

He finally looked up at me and spoke, "Isabella, I want to know what happened yesterday."

"What do you mean? I didn't feel well and needed to go home. That's all."

Mike scoffed. "Pretty convenient that you felt bad when you went to meet your ex for coffee. And then you're late this morning too. Don't you see how that looks?"

"What, Mike, you think I slept with him last night?" I rolled my eyes and flipped open a case to review.

"Yeah, Isabella, I do."

I closed the file and looked up to find accusations in his eyes as he glared at me. I stood up and put my hands on the desk in front of me. "You know that I don't do stuff like that."

"Believe me, I know, Isabella." He paused for a moment and then stood up. "I think that we should take a break."

I laughed and crossed my arms. "Take a break? Are we 16? Just say it Mike. Say you want to break up with me because I won't sleep with you."

"Fine. It's over. We're done." He walked out of my office and didn't look back.

I sat down at the desk, feeling like someone had just punched me in the stomach. It didn't feel anything like leaving Edward, but Mike used to be good to me. I picked up my phone and texted Rose. _Mike just dumped me. I don't put out enough I guess._

Within seconds, my phone buzzed. **The ass. You can do better. He doesn't understand.**

I slid my phone into my purse and decided that I should actually get some work accomplished today since I left early yesterday.

XxXxX

I had barely gotten home before I heard my computer ding with a new email. Edward Cullen. I felt my nerves rise as I sat down and opened the email.

 **I need you to answer some things for me. I need an explanation why you actually left me. And why did you kiss me this morning?**

I sighed, knowing that this would be coming at some point. _I left because you deserved better than a girl that couldn't defend herself. You deserved better than a girl that was so broken I didn't speak for days. I couldn't stand any male to be in a room with me for a week, and even then it was hard. I didn't know how to be around you. And then I got to thinking that if I couldn't even be in the same room, how would I ever have sex with another man? And you deserved better than a girl that could never have sex. And no, I never slept with Mike. I haven't been with anyone. As for why I kissed you. I don't know. I just got caught up in you and memories of how good we were together and I just did it. I'm sorry that I did, really._

As soon as I sent the email, my phone buzzed with a text from Mike. He told me he was sorry and overreacted, and he wanted to know if I could forgive him and just forget what he said. I turned my phone off and laid it down on the counter. I thought back to kissing Edward this morning and realized how immensely I had fucked everything up. Another email came through and I found myself nervous to open it.

 **I just wish that you had told me. We could've worked through everything together. I never should have stayed after you fell asleep last night, and I know that. This morning wasn't solely your fault. But you're like a drug to me, Bella. I know that I should stay away and get over you, but I can't. You're a drug.**

I sat still for a long time, staring at his words. He was still hurting over the breakup, and I knew that this week had reopened old wounds as well. I didn't even know what to say to that. I'm sorry didn't seem to cover any of what I had put him through because I was too scared to confront him with it all.

I went into my bedroom, peeling off the work clothes that suddenly felt too restricting. I pulled on a loose tank top and some shorts, letting my hair fall loose around my face. I wiped off all signs of makeup and stared at my reflection in the mirror. How had I become this woman that I didn't even recognize? How did I let myself change so much? I tucked my hair behind my ears and just stared at the face of the woman that looked so much like me on the outside, but didn't even feel like me on the inside.

A knock on my front door brought my out of my thoughts, and I glanced at the clock on my way to answer it. I had been just sitting in my room lost in my own head for over an hour. I pulled the door open and found Edward standing there, completely disheveled.

"Why aren't you answering me?" He was breathing heavily and his hair looked as thought his hands had tried pulling pieces of it out

I backed up to let him inside and closed the door. "I turned my phone off because Mike was texting and I don't want to talk to him. I haven't been at my computer."

Edward was standing in the middle of the room watching me. "I texted, called, emailed you. Dammit Bella, all I could think was that something happened to you again."

I walked toward him, but stopped before I got too close. "I'm sorry, Edward. But I'm okay."

He looked over me and then I couldn't read his face. His gaze lifted back up to find my eyes. He took a few steps toward me and ran his hand down my cheek softly. I stood still and watched him, afraid to move. "You look so much like you used to. Just…just give me a moment."

I looked away from him, toward the floor. I knew if I spoke right now, whatever this was for him would be broken, and I didn't want to upset him more.

He suddenly pulled his hand back and I lifted my gaze to his quickly. "Shit, I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me, Bella. You've got a boyfriend and we broke up and this is so fucked up."

I put my hand on his arm, trying to calm him down. "Mike and I broke up, Edward. But this is all kinds of fucked up."

Edward stared at me for a moment and then took my hand, leading me over to the couch. We sat down and I was totally confused as to what was happening. He smiled and faced me, chuckling at the look on my face. "I want to know you again. I miss my friend."

I smiled and nodded, "I miss you too." And so we sat there on the couch until 1 in the morning when Edward decided we should sleep and he left. We didn't touch each other once, but we talked the whole time. We talked about everything from the moment we broke up. Some parts were harder to tell than others, but we made it through. He left with a small smile, and I waved him goodbye. Maybe I could at least have that friendship back.

 **Please review! I'm loving all the attention this is getting. Thanks to everyone keeping up with it.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you to everyone reviewing. I love getting to know what everyone thinks about the different characters. We're going to a little more about Alice in this chapter which I hope helps clear some things up for everyone about her.**

Jasper POV

I've been watching Alice ever since her phone call with Edward. She told me that Bella had been raped, and I knew that must have changed her feelings on everything that happened. Alice would always have a hard time forgiving Bella, I knew, simply because Edward is her brother and she has always wanted to protect him. Edward wasn't himself when Bella ended things between them, and Alice would never forgive her for that.

I smiled setting down my notebook, "That's all the time we have today, Mrs. Smith. I hope to see you back next week. What I want from you is to make a list of everything you've ever wanted to do but never did, and then think about _why_ you didn't do those things."

The woman smiled and shook my head. "Thank you, Dr. Hale. I'll do that."

I led the woman from my office and smiled as I found Alice leaning against the wall. "Hey there, handsome."

I stepped back as she walked into my office and I shut the door behind me. "You don't have patients? I thought you were booked solid today."

She shook her head and sat on the couch. "My 1 o'clock called this morning to cancel. She couldn't get out of the house, it's a bad day, and I couldn't convince her to come. We rescheduled her."

I nodded and filed Mrs. Smith's notes away before sitting down with Alice. "How's it been today?"

"Hard. Harder than I thought it would be. Working with rape and sexual assault victims is difficult anyway, but now it feels personal."

I nodded and took her hand. Alice tried to take the fashion route in college, and then she moved to interior design, but none of them made her feel like she was doing anything important in the world. When I told her about one of my courses in college that taught psychologists how to deal with victims of assault and rape, Alice found her interest in life. She wanted to help people, mostly young girls, overcome such a traumatic event. I knew some days were very hard on her, and her eyes would hold many ghosts in them. Other days, she seemed frightened to be in public by herself for fear that the same thing might happen to her. But most days, Alice was my bubbly, happy girl that knew exactly what to do to help these women heal.

Alice smiled and laced her fingers with mine, "I'll go in a minute. I know you have a client. I just wanted to see you."

I kissed the top of her head. "I'll wait for you to get done this afternoon before I head home, okay?"

"Thank you. It's just…I keep seeing all of these girls as Bella. If she had just told us…" Her voice trailed off and I saw the tears beginning to gather in her eyes.

I knelt on the floor in front of her and held her gaze. "Don't do that to yourself, Ali. You can't blame yourself for not being able to help her."

She nodded slowly and pulled me closer, placing a small kiss on my lips. "I know. I just feel terrible for how I treated her. She just…I don't want her to hurt Edward."

I nodded and placed small kisses all over her face. "I know, love."

She smiled softly and stood, waving as she left my office.

Bella POV

Work went easily the next day. Mike left me alone, and I found that it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would to know that we are over. He must have gotten the hint that I wouldn't accept an apology from him when I shut my phone off the night before and never returned any of his calls or texts. I was preparing for a small court case, when I noticed an email sitting in my inbox. I felt dread creep in as I saw Alice's name and wondered what she would be upset with me about this time.

 **Hey Bella,**

 **I figured after the way I yelled at you, you wouldn't answer the phone if I tried to call. I know that I wouldn't. So I thought email might be the best way to go since it's too much to include in a text. I want to say I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was way out of line, and I apologize. You know how protective I get of Edward, but it was not my place at all and I truly am sorry for how I acted.**

 **Please don't be mad at Edward, but he told me what happened. Why you broke up with him. I want you to know that if you ever need anything, I'm here. I know that it's super awkward now, and I know that I don't really know you and your life in New York, but I could help. I help girls that have been through trauma every day. I wish I could've help you work through everything that happened then.**

 **Pictures used to be your and Edward's thing, and I don't even know if you still love holding on to pictures like you used to. I just thought maybe this could be a peace offering. I would love to talk to you sometime and try to mend what got so broken between us. You were the sister I never had, Bella.**

 **-Alice**

I wasn't surprised that Edward told Alice what had happened to me. The two of them had always been thick as thieves, and it was rare that one didn't know everything going on in the other's life. I also knew that I wouldn't be able to stop myself from forgiving Alice for yelling at me that day. I would've done the same thing if I were in her shoes.

I clicked on the attached photo and a smile immediately lit up my face. Alice and I were at prom, arms draped over each other's shoulders, laughing our heads off. It was senior year; Edward was my date and Jasper took Alice. We left the guys and decided that we were going to dance with each other. Neither of them cared for a little while, but then we were forced to split up and actually spend time with our dates. There was definitely a time that Alice was my best friend and I thought nothing would ever happen to that friendship. I printed off the picture and tucked into my purse so I would have it to keep safe at home. I hit reply and began typing my email back to her.

 _Alice,_

 _I'm glad you emailed me. You should know that I forgive you for the phone call. I would have done the same thing in your shoes. He's your brother, and I know how the two of you are. Don't worry about that any more._

 _I'm also not surprised that Edward told you what happened to me. I just couldn't talk about it. It was too hard. Rosalie was the only one here that I trusted enough to be around, and it was even hard telling her what had happened. Rose told me to let you two in and it would be okay, but all I could think about was that I was too wrong for Edward now. I'm sure that train of thought doesn't surprise you with your job though. I've heard a lot of women feel that way._

 _I also want to thank you for the picture. That was such a great night. I miss how close we used to be. You were like my sister, too. I would love to talk sometime. It's been such a long time._

 _-Bella_

I looked up from the computer after I sent the email, and Mike was leaning against my door, watching me. His eyes looked tired, but he gave me a small smile. He glanced to the floor before looking back up at me. "Can we talk, Isabella?"

I nodded and motioned to the chair in my office, "Sure, Mike."

He closed the door behind him and made his way to the chair. I noticed how tired he looked as he sat down. "I'm sorry for what I said. I tried to call you last night."

"I know. I turned my phone off. I just couldn't deal with it."

Mike looked up to me quickly, and I realized he thought the breakup was too hard for me. He completely misunderstood what I meant. "We can fix things between us, Isabella. We will both work on it, and I'm sure we can get back what we had."

I shook my head, looking down at my desk instead of at the hope in his eyes. "Mike, no. That isn't what I meant. I can't do this between us anymore. I need to be on my own for awhile and figure out some things for myself."

When I glanced back up, he was staring at me. His face was unreadable. Everything was silent for a few moments, and then Mike began to speak very softly. "What has gotten into you, Isabella?"

"Nothing, Mike. I'm still me. I'm just more like who I used to be and less of what _you_ are wanting me to be."

"What do you mean? I haven't done anything to change you."

I laughed at that and shook my head. "You're kidding, right? After we graduated, you changed almost everything about me. I had to cut my hair because it would look more professional. I had to go by Isabella instead of Bella because that made me seem more educated. You fought with me once for planning a spur of the moment trip because 'lawyers can't do things on the spot like that.' You wanted to change me to fit exactly what _you_ wanted."

Mike stared at me and then looked to the floor. "I was just trying to help you. You know that."

"Well it didn't help, Mike. You changed who I was, and I let you because I didn't know what else to do."

"So…this is really it?" He looked back up at me, and I saw the sadness on his face.

I nodded slowly, not breaking the gaze with him. "Yeah, Mike. I'm sorry."

The sadness slowly turned into anger. Mike was the kind of guy that girls didn't break up with. He was always the one to leave, and he tended to get them back any time he wanted it. I was the exception, and he just didn't know how to handle that rejection. He stood up, leaning forward with a hand on my desk. "You know what, _Bella_? Fine. But you see how many other guys want to waste time on you when you won't even spread your legs."

My jaw dropped at his words and I stood up, my hand connecting with his face before he even knew it was coming. "Get the hell out of my office."

Mike's cheek was already turning red as he turned to storm from the office. He slammed the door behind him, grabbed his jacket, and completely left the building. I sat back down slowly and turned to look out the window behind me. He wasn't entirely wrong, and it scared me to think about that. I might truly spend the rest of my life alone if I couldn't get over the fear and have sex with someone. I tried. Believe me, I tried several times with Mike, but I just couldn't do it. He never knew what really happened to me, but I was sure he had his suspicions about it. Every time, I just felt like I was transported back to that night.

My phone vibrated on my desk, and I turned back around seeing Edward's name flashing on the screen. I picked it up, confused as to why he was calling me. "Hello?"

"Hey, Bella. I hope this isn't a bad time. I completely forgot you were at work right now until I was already calling you."

I smiled, "No, it's fine. I'm not too busy today. What's up?"

"I just wanted to make sure you were still coming tomorrow night. I finished up rehearsal for the morning; I'll be back this afternoon, but I just wanted to check in with you."

"Of course, I'll be there. I couldn't miss the great Edward Cullen playing in New York."

He laughed in the phone, and it made me smile. "Great! I gave you two tickets, right? For you and your boyfriend?"

The smile dropped off my face and I paused for a moment before I answered. "Umm…yeah, you did. I won't be needing the other one though, if you want it back."

Edward went silent on the other end, and I heard him clear his throat before he answered. "No, I don't need it back. What…umm, what happened?"

"We decided that things weren't working for us anymore." I figured Edward didn't really need any more details than that. I didn't want him to know how much that night still haunted me.

"I'm sorry, Bella. You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm okay. This had been coming for awhile now, I think."

I heard someone yelling in the background, and Edward must have put a hand over the phone as I heard a muffled yell back from him. "Bella, I'm sorry, but I've got to go. They want me to run through something one more time."

"Yeah, no, that's fine. I should probably get back to work, too."

Edward was silent for just a moment before his words came out in a rush. "Do you want to get dinner with me tonight?"

I was taken aback by the question, and I answered before I even realized what I would say. "Yeah. That sounds nice."

I could hear the smile in Edward's voice as he answered. "Oh, great. I'll, uh…I'll text you in a bit and figure out a time and stuff."

I laughed softly. "Okay, Edward. Now go and rehearse."

We mumbled our goodbyes, and I smiled as I laid my phone back down on my desk. It was good to know that Edward and I might be mending some of the craters that got left behind in the friendship, but I knew we would never be back to how we were before. I wasn't delusional in thinking that these few days would change anything, but I was happy to know that maybe this was a start. Maybe we would be able to get back to the friendship that we had at one time.

Tanya POV

"Edward, get off the phone! We need you to run through something one more time before you get done for this morning."

He yelled back to me, but it was still several minutes before he got off the phone. I watched Edward hang up and a smile was plastered on his face. He didn't say anything as he walked by and took his place in front of the piano.

I sat down near the edge of the stage and watched him play, his fingers moving quickly across the keys. I had been working with Edward for awhile now, and it was always amazing to listen to him. He put his whole being into whatever he played, and I loved being able to see that passion and intensity radiating from him. When I first began working with Edward, I noticed how gorgeous of a man he was immediately. It would be hard not to with the way he looked. But I also noticed that he seemed to be pretty broken, but I never knew from what.

It took awhile before Edward opened up to me about some personal things in his life, but then I learned a girl hurt him pretty bad at some point and he just never moved past that. In all of my time working with Edward, he never had a serious girlfriend. There were some here and there, but I could tell his attention was never really on them. I don't know if the brokenness was what drew me to Edward, but I wanted more than anything to help him mend.

Somewhere down the road, I fell in love with him. I never admitted that to anyone, and I denied it fully to anyone that suspected it. I did though. I worked to pull him out of the dark days, and I helped him shine on the days where everything seemed to be going well. I knew he never saw me like that, but I couldn't leave and work with anyone else. Edward wouldn't see me as the girl he lost. I knew that love for her would never go away. But I held hope that one day, just maybe, I could help be the girl that mended that broken part of his heart.

 **Please review! What do you guys think about Tanya? I hope to update again soon, but just work with me for a few weeks. I'm really busy right now with school.**


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